Misplaced Pages

#939060

91-464: Dyker Heights originated as a speculative luxury housing development in October 1895 when Walter Loveridge Johnson developed a portion of woodland into a suburban community. It maintained its status as a wealthy neighborhood through the 20th century. During the height of his development, the boundaries were primarily between Tenth and Thirteenth Avenues and from 79th Street to 86th Street. The finest homes of

182-459: A Coptic speaking Egyptian community. St. George Coptic Orthodox Church serves the community. The church was established in 1973. However, since the 2000s, there has been a slow growing influx of Asian residents into the neighborhood and New York City Department of City Planning released a 2020 census data showing for the first time in history, the Asian population in the neighborhood has surpassed

273-496: A clear view of the harbor and its defenses, especially Fort Hamilton which was complete by November 1831. De Russy died in 1865 and his wife, Helen, sold the property in 1888 to Jane Elisabeth Loveridge and Frederick Henry Johnson. According to the Brooklyn Eagle , Frederick Johnson did "much toward developing the locality in which he resided. He was the author of the original New Utrecht Improvement Bill, and an ardent advocate of

364-524: A colonial-era landowner, about where Shore Road and 86th Street meet today. In southwest Brooklyn , the thoroughfare had other names, including: "State Road," "Road from Fort Hamilton to New Utrecht," and "Road from New Utrecht to Denyse's Ferry." According to the Dyker Heights Historical Society, the Highway ended at the ferry landing in what is now Fort Hamilton, Brooklyn . In 1740 Denyse,

455-468: A high population of residents who are uninsured , or who receive healthcare through Medicaid . In 2018, this population of uninsured residents was estimated to be 15%, which is higher than the citywide rate of 12%. The concentration of fine particulate matter , the deadliest type of air pollutant , in Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights is 0.0074 milligrams per cubic metre (7.4 × 10 oz/cu ft), lower than

546-461: A local New Utrecht resident, took over ferry operations in The Narrows, serving Brooklyn and Staten Island . Denyse’s Ferry was located at the base of the hill on which Fort Hamilton was built, near today’s Fort Hamilton Parkway and Shore Road. Kings Highway traveled northeast from Denyse’s Ferry to present-day 86th Street. This portion of the Highway is known today as Fort Hamilton Parkway. At

637-503: A marine panorama hard to beat." Dyker Heights was so desirous that important members of society flocked to it. The Brooklyn Eagle reported in December 1899 that this "drain" on the more established social neighborhoods such as Brooklyn Heights and those in Manhattan , "almost threatens to lower the social tone of the neighborhoods where this universal exodus is effecting a gradual change in

728-510: A northwardly direction. St. Phillips Church in Dyker Heights now occupies part of the former lane, which meandered down to Van Brunt’s Dock in Bay Ridge . Closer to Bay Ridge , Denyse’s Lane was known as Van Brunt’s Lane, today's 79th Street. The highest natural point in southwestern Brooklyn is at Eleventh Avenue and 82nd Street, at Dyker Heights . During the time of Kings Highway, the hill

819-642: A quartet of dancers. In 1988, Polizzotto was diagnosed with lymphoma, which was successfully treated the following year. To celebrate his triumph, Polizzotto mounted the display the following year and until his death. In 2001, Polizzotto died; however, his family continued the tradition in his honor for a few years, until stopping in 2020. In 1996, the Casos, who moved to Dyker Heights in 1995 and have since relocated, had Midwood artist Carl Oliveri design Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol", which included 29 life-size figures on their front lawn at 1062 84th St. The neighborhood

910-416: A relatively straight route through Borough Park and ends at 86th Street in Dyker Heights . The avenue is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long. It is part of a one-way pair with Fourteenth Avenue, being one-way southbound to 60th Street (14th Avenue is one-way northbound north of New Utrecht Avenue and 60th Street). While New York neighborhoods have no official boundaries, the two neighborhoods meet approximately in

1001-615: A remote for Late Night with Conan O'Brien in Dyker Heights. A PBS televised documentary "Dyker Lights" was produced in 2001 as an insight into the neighborhood with stories involving the Christmas celebration lights. Early on, the two most noted homes were on 84th Street, between 11th and 12th Avenues, directly across from one another. The home of Lucy Spata with her Santa theme at 1152 84th Street and that of Alfred Polizzotto with his Nutcracker motif at 1145 84th Street. In December 1998,

SECTION 10

#1732855891940

1092-611: A similar ratio of college-educated residents to the rest of the city as of 2018. While 46% of residents age 25 and older have a college education or higher, 19% have less than a high school education and 35% are high school graduates or have some college education. By contrast, 40% of Brooklynites and 38% of city residents have a college education or higher. The percentage of Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights students excelling in reading and math has been increasing, with reading achievement rising from 51 percent in 2000 to 52 percent in 2011, and math achievement rising from 49 percent to 71 percent within

1183-448: A slight diagonal; this section appears in today’s street grid as 84th Street. At Sixteenth Avenue is the cemetery where the original New Utrecht Reformed Church of 1700 stood. At Eighteenth Avenue is the church of 1828. At this 1828 church, the Highway made an abrupt 90 degree leftward turn and traveled northward one and a half blocks (as part of today’s Eighteenth Avenue) until it made another abrupt 90 degree turn, this time eastward. It

1274-475: A very detailed description of the homes in Dyker Heights: The typical Dyker Heights residences have five rooms each on the first and second floors and four rooms on the third. Upon entrance, the inmate or visitor is ushered into a hall twelve feet wide which runs back to the butler's pantry . To the right of this hall is the parlor and library and to the left the reception and dining rooms. The rear space

1365-591: Is 11228. It is patrolled by the 68th Precinct of the New York City Police Department . Politically it is represented by the New York City Council 's 43rd District. The neighborhood of Dyker Heights lies within the boundaries of the then-Dutch town of New Utrecht settled in 1657. The area that is now known as Dyker Heights was not developed in the 17th or 18th century because the land was too sloped for farming; it remained common woodland until

1456-402: Is as invigorating as the Dyker Heights climate is healthy-living. The rare opportunities afforded by Dyker Heights to the wealthy and to those in moderate circumstances are due largely to the energy, enterprise and good taste of its founder, Mr. Walter L. Johnson." A month later, The Wall Street Journal published "An Ideal Spot for a Home". From that article, one can clearly see why Dyker Heights

1547-491: Is at Bay Parkway and 78th Street. East of Ocean Avenue , the street is largely residential. It tracks eastward, then northeast, then north through Brooklyn and reaches East 98th Street in central Brooklyn. At that point, it flows into Howard Avenue to provide seamless access to Eastern Parkway , another major road in Brooklyn with side medians and service roads. A Business Improvement District has been established along part of

1638-668: Is higher than the median life expectancy of 81.2 for all New York City neighborhoods. Most inhabitants are middle-aged adults and youth: 20% are between the ages of 0–17, 34% between 25 and 44, and 25% between 45 and 64. The ratio of college-aged and elderly residents was lower, at 7% and 15% respectively. As of 2016, the median household income in Community District 10 was $ 68,679. In 2018, an estimated 19% of Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights residents lived in poverty, compared to 21% in all of Brooklyn and 20% in all of New York City. One in twelve residents (8%) were unemployed, compared to 9% in

1729-492: Is home to the largest concentration of Holocaust survivors and their descendants in the United States. In Dyker Heights, 13th Avenue is zoned mostly for low-density residential townhouses, with shops on the first floors of some buildings. It is a two-way street with one lane in each direction, and ends at Dyker Beach Park and Golf Course at 86th Street. 13th Avenue is served by the following: The 13th Avenue station of

1820-465: Is less than that of the city as a whole. The incarceration rate of 168 per 100,000 people is lower than that of the city as a whole. The 68th Precinct has a lower crime rate than in the 1990s, with crimes across all categories having decreased by 88.6% between 1990 and 2018. The precinct reported 2 murders , 16 rapes , 59 robberies , 129 felony assaults, 96 burglaries , 387 grand larcenies , and 86 grand larcenies auto in 2018. The firehouse for

1911-416: Is more exclusive in character. The northern border of the neighborhood is more closely integrated with surrounding areas. The Dyker Heights Civic Association, founded in 1928, is a civic group that represents the community's interests. The area as a whole is known for its Christmas lighting displays, which are often elaborate. Dyker Heights is part of Brooklyn Community District 10 , and its primary ZIP Code

SECTION 20

#1732855891940

2002-560: Is part of New York's 11th congressional district , represented by Republican Nicole Malliotakis as of 2021. It is also part of the 22nd State Senate district, represented by Democrat Andrew Gounardes , and the 46th and 49th State Assembly districts, represented respectively by Democrats Mathylde Frontus and Peter J. Abbate Jr. Dyker Heights is located in New York's 43rd City Council district, represented by Justin Brannan . Dyker Heights

2093-413: Is served by Brooklyn Community Board 10 . The Dyker Heights Civic Association is the neighborhood's unofficial civic association. The NYPD 's 68th Precinct is located at 333 65th Street. The 68th Precinct ranked 7th safest out of 69 patrol areas for per-capita crime in 2010. As of 2018, with a non-fatal assault rate of 23 per 100,000 people, Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights' rate of violent crimes per capita

2184-1004: Is so crowded that most people finish their meals standing up. Michael Taub, "My Mother's Borough Park" In Borough Park, 13th Avenue is primarily zoned as either a commercial district, or a residential district with commercial shops on the first floor. A New York Times reporter compared the stretch of 13th Avenue in Borough Park to the Lower East Side at the beginning of the 20th century, where Orthodox Jews could buy anything they needed. The huge selection on 13th Avenue includes religious items, silver Judaica, Jewish books, electronics, modest clothing for men and women, children's clothes, wig stores, kosher meat markets, kosher bakeries, and kosher candy stores. All kinds of ethnic and modern Jewish dining establishments abound, including restaurants, cafes, delis and pizza stores, all with strict rabbinic supervision. Specialty clothing satisfying

2275-430: Is taken up by the kitchen, butler's pantry and washrooms with tiled floors. Birdseye maple is used in the finishing of the parlor and quartered oak in that of the library, one with mantles of the same wood in fancy tile finish. A large fireplace with ornamental andirons completes the mural decoration. The ceilings are ten feet high on the first floor, while nine feet is the elevation of the second and eight feet that of

2366-625: The BMT Culver Line used to be over the avenue at 37th Street until it was demolished in 1975. Private intercity bus lines serving the Hasidic community leave from 49th Street; these include buses to Williamsburg , Monroe , and Monsey . Kings Highway (Brooklyn) Kings Highway is a broad avenue that curves about the southern part of the Borough of Brooklyn in New York City . Its west end

2457-631: The Coney Island Hospital , NYU Langone Hospital – Brooklyn , and Maimonides Medical Center are located in nearby neighborhoods. Additionally, the BRAVO Volunteer Ambulance is run by the Bay Ridge Ambulance Volunteer Organization. Dyker Heights is covered by ZIP Code 11228. The United States Post Office 's Dyker Heights Station is located at 8320 13th Avenue. Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights generally has

2548-577: The New York City Board of Education to establish the first public kindergarten for blind children at the home in 1907. The original building is gone, but the work begun in Dyker Heights provided a legacy of significant reforms in the public education of blind children within New York and other regions of the United States. One of the many focal points of the neighborhood was the Dyker Heights Club, which started in October 1896. By spring of 1898

2639-564: The New York City Fire Department (FDNY)'s Engine Co. 284/Ladder Co. 149 is located at 1157 79th Street. As of 2018, preterm births and births to teenage mothers are less common in Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights than in other places citywide. In Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights, there were 95 preterm births per 1,000 live births (compared to 87 per 1,000 citywide), and 11.4 births to teenage mothers per 1,000 live births (compared to 19.3 per 1,000 citywide). Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights has

2730-491: The "king of the Christmas lights". Christmas lights are now the core of the Dyker Heights identity, because the whole community, not just one home or one block, participates. As such, Dyker Heights has been referred to as "an epicenter of professionally-hung Christmas lights". Most holiday decorations in the area are not erected by homeowners, but by local decorating companies, but the cost of hiring professional decorators can vary greatly, from $ 1,000 to $ 20,000 or more, depending on

2821-454: The 1940s, Dyker Heights has had a majority Italian-American population. The Brooklyn Eagle explained a problem Johnson had with a particular Italian family in a home "which at the time was owned by Walter L. Johnson, was occupied by an Italian family, to whom Mr. Johnson paid $ 600 to vacate it in order that the neighborhood of Dyker Heights, which is very carefully restricted, might have no objectionable features about it." By 1940 Dyker Heights

Dyker Heights, Brooklyn - Misplaced Pages Continue

2912-507: The Dyker Heights Post Office on the northwest corner of 13th and 84th Streets; along its northeast edge runs Bay Ridge Avenue; 16th Avenue is its southeast boundary; Fort Hamilton makes its southwest border; and Interstate 278 is the northwest limit. Based on data from the 2010 United States Census , the population of Dyker Heights was 42,419, an increase of 3,087 (7.8%) from the 39,332 counted in 2000 . The racial makeup of

3003-552: The Holocaust. Legislation for the renaming was submitted by New York City Councilmen David G. Greenfield and Brad Lander in conjunction with the Raoul Wallenberg Centennial Celebration Commission. Hundreds of people attended the naming ceremony. According to speakers at the event, many of the individuals rescued by Wallenberg immigrated to Borough Park to establish their families. The neighborhood

3094-524: The Spatas' home was covered in lights, illuminated soldiers and choirboys, and other Christmas figures. The inside is decorated with 50 motorized dolls, miniature villages and many gifts. Outside Santa, played by her nephew, greets children and others who pass by. The white mansion, owned by Alfred Polizzotto and his family, was adorned with a pair of 29-foot (8.8 m) high wooden soldiers which stood guard and wave their arms. The front lawn had rearing horses and

3185-489: The Van Dykes (an original New Utrecht family) who built the dykes to drain the meadow, or for the dykes that the Van Dykes built. Johnson was able to develop this portion of New Utrecht woodland into a residential community by making necessary improvements to it. In 1890, the only roads present were Kings Highway , 86th Street, Denyse's Lane, and a small unnamed road near Tenth Avenue – none of which were paved and only 86th Street

3276-475: The White population. The Asian population residents are between 30,000 and 39,999 while the remaining White population residents are between 10,000 and 19,999. The 2020 census data also showed a small, but significant Hispanic population residents of 5,000 to 9,999. Dyker Heights' housing stock consists mostly of stately, single-family detached and semi-detached bungalows. In December 1899, the Brooklyn Eagle wrote

3367-473: The afternoon. Since 1999, 13th Avenue has been the site for a nightly Simchat Beit HaShoeivah musical performance during the intermediate days of Sukkot , organized by Chabad Rabbi Aaron Ginsburg. On December 9, 2012, the first day of Hanukkah , the stretch of 13th Avenue between 36th and 60th streets was co-named Raoul Wallenberg Way in honor of the Swedish diplomat who saved 100,000 Hungarian Jews during

3458-647: The annexation of the Town to this City." The Town of New Utrecht was annexed to the City of Brooklyn on July 1, 1894. On January 1, 1898, the City of Brooklyn was annexed to the City of New York . Involved with real estate, Johnson was probably aware of the real estate pressures on and potential of the real estate in New Utrecht. With this in mind, he most likely purchased the De Russy estate with

3549-420: The area of 65th Street. In an approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) section traversing Borough Park, the street contains a huge variety of stores, businesses and food establishments catering to the local and international Haredi Jewish community. The avenue extends roughly 1 mile (1.6 km) in length through Borough Park, and contains a huge variety of stores, businesses and food establishments catering to

3640-480: The area suggest it started sometime in the 1980s. In 1985 one Lou Singer began running tours (Singer's Brooklyn) through the most elaborately light parts of Bensonhurst , Canarsie , Bay Ridge , and Dyker Heights where one could find "designer lighting". Since those initial 1980 reports, the lights of Dyker Heights have become increasingly popular with New Yorkers as newspaper articles, news programs, documentaries, and remotes were created. In 2000, Conan O'Brien filmed

3731-466: The avenue itself turned into a place "to see and be seen". In the 1980s the religious Jewish demographic of Borough Park shifted from Modern Orthodox to Hasidic families. In response, new shops and restaurants opened on 13th Avenue to serve the expanding Haredi community. In 1987 two of the most popular stores debuted: Eichler's Judaica bookstore and Kosher Castle Dairy Cafeteria. New stores also opened selling imported goods and computer technology. At

Dyker Heights, Brooklyn - Misplaced Pages Continue

3822-463: The avenue, including two JP Morgan banks standing one block apart, at 48th and 49th streets. In 2009 a ten-block strip of 13th Avenue, from 45th to 55th Streets, had 14 banks, with two more opening by 2010. Flushing Bank and Northfield Bank joined the mix in 2012. The avenue has achieved global recognition, especially among Israeli expatriates and tourists. In 1987, The Park House Hotel opened its doors between 12th and 13th avenues on 48th Street as

3913-604: The best and most convenient thoroughfares for the lovers of riding and driving.” The British General Lord Cornwallis traveled along the road with his troops on August 26, 1776, to the Battle of Brooklyn . He achieved a major defeat for the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War . When President George Washington came to survey the agricultural abilities of Kings , Queens , and Suffolk counties after

4004-567: The character of the population." Property on 84th Street near 13th Avenue was made available to the International Sunshine Society in 1906 by lawyer, financier, and promoter George E. Crater, Jr. The society was able to acquire the house for $ 11,000, roughly half the market value, and opened the Dyker Heights Home for Blind Babies on 1 November 1906. Cynthia W. Alden , Mary C. Seward , and other society officers worked with

4095-414: The citywide and boroughwide averages. Twelve percent of Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights residents are smokers , which is lower the city average of 14% of residents being smokers. In Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights, 28% of residents are obese , 15% are diabetic , and 31% have high blood pressure —compared to the citywide averages of 24%, 11%, and 28% respectively. In addition, 16% of children are obese, compared to

4186-451: The citywide average of 20%. Ninety-two percent of residents eat some fruits and vegetables every day, which is slightly higher than the city's average of 87%. In 2018, 74% of residents described their health as "good", "very good", or "excellent", lower than the city's average of 78%. For every supermarket in Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights, there are 21 bodegas . The Bay Ridge/Dyker Heights/Bensonhurst area does not have any hospitals. However,

4277-506: The citywide average of 75% of students. Public Early childhood education Parochial Thirteenth Avenue (Brooklyn) Thirteenth Avenue (or 13th Avenue ) is a roughly 2.5-mile-long (4.0 km) street in the borough of Brooklyn in New York City . Thirteenth Avenue is the commercial center of the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Borough Park , and Dyker Heights . 13th Avenue starts at 36th Street in Kensington . It maintains

4368-526: The club had a $ 30,000 clubhouse designed by Albert Edward Parfitt on an $ 8,500 lot, measuring 200×200, located on the northeast corner of 13th Avenue and 86th Street. Johnson moved his real estate office into the clubhouse and hired a full-time architect, Constantine Schubert, who was also a Dyker Heights homeowner. This grand, neo-classical building was demolished in 1929 by the Archbishop John Hughes Knights of Columbus Club, when they acquired

4459-439: The corner of Kings Highway and 86th Street stood New Utrecht Town Hall, built in 1878 (demolished in 1912). This building was also used as a school, police station, and jail. Kings Highway traveled northeast, at about a 40-degree angle to the street grid, until it reached the middle of 81st Street between Eleventh and Twelfth Avenues. At the intersection of the current-day 81st Street and Eleventh Avenue, Denyse’s Lane branched off in

4550-688: The development were situated along the top of the 110-foot (34 m) hill, at about Eleventh Avenue and 82nd Street. Dyker Heights has a suburban character with detached and semi-detached one-and two-family homes, many of which have driveways and private yards, which are uncommon in parts of New York City. The neighborhood contains tree-lined streets, and there are very few apartment buildings. Dyker Heights can be divided in roughly three sections. The southernmost section, south of 86th Street and east of 7th Avenue, contains Dyker Beach Park and Golf Course . The central section between Bay Ridge Parkway and 86th Street, and between 14th Avenue and Fort Hamilton Parkway,

4641-408: The different minhagim (customs) of the various Hasidic sects in the neighborhood is readily available. Thirteenth Avenue is known as the "Avenue of Values". In the days preceding major Jewish holidays, 13th Avenue is also filled with sidewalk vendors selling holiday needs. The sidewalks and street are often congested, and parking is at a premium. Locals and tourists flood the avenue on Sundays and

SECTION 50

#1732855891940

4732-462: The end of the 1990s, businesses began selling electronics and Jewish books, music and videos to overseas customers via the Internet . Observers credit the younger generation of Borough Park, who prefer to do business with other Jews, for fueling 13th Avenue's commercial growth. Most businesses are independently owned. One sign of the strong 13th Avenue economy is the heavy concentration of banks lining

4823-641: The entrances. In December 1899 the Brooklyn Eagle reported that, "work has recently been commenced upon thirty high-class Houses, the demand for which runs a dead heat with the supply." Johnson set very high standards for the community: the Wall Street Journal explained "the property is carefully restricted against all nuisances and no building can be erected upon a plot of less than 60 feet (18 m) in width by 100 feet (30 m) in depth, and each building must cost at least $ 4,000 and stand well back from

4914-498: The eves of Jewish holidays. In 1989 the two-way avenue was converted to one-way in an effort to reduce congestion, but the traffic remains heavy. Children and strollers are seen everywhere, as the Haredi Jewish residents with typically large families shop for their needs. Borough Park is considered a low-crime neighborhood, and parents often leave their babies unattended in strollers outside stores and restaurants. Notwithstanding

5005-557: The example of the parkways designed by Frederick Law Olmsted (1822–1903), who designed the Eastern and Ocean parkways , the boulevard malls were planted with trees to separate local and through traffic along the street. Unlike Olmsted’s parkways, however, the Kings Highway malls are much narrower because existing development constrained their size; they do not provide the leisurely promenades that characterize Olmsted’s work. Kings Highway

5096-612: The finest in Greater New York, commanding an extensive view of water from Sandy Hook to the New Jersey Palisades , with Staten Island and the shores of New Jersey directly in front." Still more praise in February 1899, "Dyker Heights has been one of the most successful and the most rapid in growth of any of the suburban settlements, over one hundred dwellings, costing from $ 5,000 to $ 25,000 each, having been erected there within

5187-520: The first kosher Hotel in Borough Park. In 1999 a 52-room luxury kosher hotel, the Avenue Plaza Hotel, opened on 13th Avenue, becoming the first hotel to appear in the neighborhood in more than a decade. These hotels along with many area merchants specifically accommodate the needs of visiting Hasidic tourists. On most early Friday afternoons Amnon's Kosher Pizza on Thirteenth Avenue in Boro Park

5278-433: The five rooms on the second floor, one is a sitting room and the remainder sleeping apartments, all of which are finished in quartered oak and sycamore. A large bathroom with tiled floors takes up the remaining space of the second story. Rising to the third floor we find plain cypress as the invariable finish of the apartments, which comprise two servants' rooms, a card or sitting room and a billiard parlor wainscoted on

5369-503: The high ground, magnificent ocean view, and careful restrictions made Dyker Heights the handsomest suburb in Greater New York . Based on the newspaper accounts, he was right. In 1896 Johnson built and sold thirty homes in Dyker Heights. By January 1897, the Brooklyn Eagle reported on his achievements. "Mr. Johnson has met with great success in the development of Dyker Heights and had probably done more business and made more sales during

5460-569: The highway after the county, which was named in honor of King Charles II of England on November 1, 1683. Originally, Kings Highway was much longer than it is now. It began at Brooklyn Ferry, now called Fulton Ferry , where Ferry Road, now called Old Fulton Street and Furman Street, ran southeastward to the small Dutch town of New Amersfoort, now known as Flatlands . It took a sharp westward turn at that point and passed into another of Brooklyn's original six towns, New Utrecht . It led into Yellow Hook ( Bay Ridge ), ending at Denyse's Ferry, operated by

5551-437: The historic context of Dyker Heights, and in contrast to Brooklyn's contemporaneous Ditmas Park and Prospect Park South developments, many of the original surviving homes have been extensively renovated and remodeled. Dyker Heights is now most famous for its Christmas lights and decorations erected each year by its residents. It has been called "Con Ed's warmest heartthrob", the "undisputed capital of Christmas pageantry", and

SECTION 60

#1732855891940

5642-537: The intention of building an upscale residential neighborhood similar to Bensonhurst-by-the-Sea, built by James D. Lynch in 1880–1890 in the Bath Beach section of New Utrecht. At that time, the Real Estate Record claimed Bensonhurst-by-the-Sea was "the most perfectly developed suburb ever laid out around New York." The restrictions placed upon the property made Bensonhurst-by-the-Sea "a model settlement, where some of

5733-542: The last two years." In September 1899, The Wall Street Journal even reported on the advantages of the development, recommending it to "the busy man of Wall Street " because of "its magnificent transportation facilities... it can be reached via the Thirty-Ninth Street Brooklyn Ferry and Eighty-Sixth Street Nassau Line in 45 minutes." In addition, the article claimed that "the 45 minutes' trip between Dyker Heights and Wall Street by water and rail

5824-572: The local and international Haredi Jewish community. While the sidewalks and streets are heavily congested during the week, all stores and businesses are shuttered on the Jewish Sabbath and Jewish holidays . In December 2012, the stretch of 13th Avenue from 36th to 60th Streets was co-named Raoul Wallenberg Way in honor of the Swedish diplomat who saved 100,000 Hungarian Jews during the Holocaust . Many of these survivors settled in Borough Park after

5915-467: The mid-19th century. The trees of this forest were used by the townsfolk as a source of firewood and construction material. When the agricultural industry of New Utrecht changed from the farming grains to the cultivation of market garden produce, the trees were cleared for tomatoes, cabbages, and potatoes, among other produce. The first house built at the top of the hill (what is now 11th Avenue and 82nd Street, at about 110 feet (34 m) above sea level)

6006-544: The most refined, intelligent and cultured of New York City and Brooklyn 's citizens have built their homes." Following Johnson's death on August 15, 1893, at the age of 52, his second son, Walter Loveridge Johnson, took over the real estate business and by October 1895 started Dyker Heights on his parents' property. Johnson named his development "Dyker Heights" after the Dyker Meadow and Beach, which his development overlooks. The meadow and beach received their name from either

6097-417: The neighborhood was 70.2% White , 0.1% African American , 0.0% Native American , 27.1% Asian , 0.0% Pacific Islander , 0.1% from other races , and 1.0% (430) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.9% of the population. The entirety of Community Board 13 had 142,075 inhabitants as of NYC Health 's 2018 Community Health Profile, with an average life expectancy of 83.1 years. This

6188-429: The past year than all the rest of the surrounding settlements combined." In April 1898 sales were still very strong. "Dyker Heights still holds its lead among the suburban sections in building operations, over forty houses having been erected there during the past year... and there are fully twenty more houses about to be built." One of its many advantages was the location, which according to the Brooklyn Eagle , "is one of

6279-568: The pond, Kings Highway traveled southeast until it reached Waters Avenue, which ran between Thirteenth and Fourteenth avenues from 83rd Street until it reached the Dyker Meadows. At Fourteenth Avenue, Kings Highway meandered around the northern limits of the Dyker Meadows Swamp, which occupied much of the block between Fourteenth and Fifteenth avenues between 83rd and 84th streets. From Sixteenth Avenue to Eighteenth Avenue, Kings Highway ran on

6370-451: The present Kings Highway. Despite its long history and importance as a connection through the borough of Brooklyn, in the early 1920s local city planners proposed to have the street demapped as part of an effort to regularize the street grid . Instead, it was widened in 1922, east of Ocean Avenue where park malls were created. The route was altered to straighten as many sections as possible, and to make it easy for vehicle traffic. Following

6461-461: The property for $ 60,000. Early in the history of Dyker Heights, Johnson continually purchased consecutive tracts of land until the boundaries of Dyker Heights stretched from 79th Street in the north, roughly 86th Street in the south, Tenth Avenue to the west, and about 300 feet (90 m) east of 13th Avenue to the east. However, the boundaries of the Neighborhood of Dyker Heights are now defined by

6552-501: The rest of both Brooklyn and New York City. Rent burden, or the percentage of residents who have difficulty paying their rent, is 49% in Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights, slightly lower than the citywide and boroughwide rates of 52% and 51% respectively. Based on this calculation, as of 2018, Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights are considered to be high-income relative to the rest of the city. The first residents were either local government officials or wealthy professionals. For instance, I. M. De Varona

6643-479: The road to support stores, restaurants and businesses in that area. Originally an Indian trail, the strip was known as "Mechawanienck" or "the ancient pathway", a name recorded in a 1652 deed. It was later known as the "wagon path" in a 1682 deed. Although not entirely built in 1704, " King's Highway " was formed in colonial New York when the locals connected the many smaller established roads, cow paths, and Indian trails that passed through Kings County. They named

6734-406: The same time period. Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights' rate of elementary school student absenteeism is lower than the rest of New York City. In Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights, 8% of elementary school students missed twenty or more days per school year , compared to the citywide average of 20% of students. Additionally, 82% of high school students in Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights graduate on time, higher than

6825-431: The scale of the display; many companies also offer additional services, including the option to take down and store decorations. Formally, the lighting and Christmas decorations begin on the last Thursday of November (Thanksgiving) and they remain until the first days of January, with mid-December being the days most visited by tourists. Although in which December the lights began is unclear, newspaper reports and tours of

6916-410: The sides and provided with seats for the players and onlookers. It may be noted further that the reception room and dining room are also wainscoted six feet high. Of the approximately 150 homes initially built by Johnson, about half remain; while the others have been razed and replaced by large Mediterranean villas , condos , as well as semi and fully attached homes. Very few of the newer homes fit into

7007-423: The street." These regulations, which were similar to those of Bensonhurst -by-the-Sea, were active until 1915. However, the most desirable feature of the area was still the "uninterrupted view of the lower bay from The Narrows to Sandy Hook and Atlantic Ocean , [which] is one of the most magnificent in the country, and nowhere else in the consolidated city is there anything to compare it with. From here can be seen

7098-471: The successful Bensonhurst-by-the-Sea, built three homes. His home was on the southwest corner of 11th Avenue and 82nd Street (across the Avenue from the home of his mother), Albert Edward Parfitt's home was on 82nd Street next to Johnson's, and the last, closest to Tenth Avenue, was the home of Arthur S. Tuttle who was Assistant Engineer of The Water Supply of The City Works Department of The City of Brooklyn. Parfitt

7189-421: The third floor. Usually the dining room is fifteen feet square and finished off in quartered sycamore . Like the hall, the reception room is done off in quartered oak, but is circular in form and has a diameter of ten feet. In the kitchen is a glazed fireplace, while below stairs, speaking from a first floor level, are the cellar and laundry, with a depth of eight feet, and an asphalt double concrete floor. Of

7280-427: The war and raised their families here. Jewish immigrants began populating Borough Park at the turn of the 20th century. Through the 1930s, 13th Avenue was lined with pushcart vendors and pickle sellers. In the late 1930s the city opened a public market on 42nd Street to force an end to the pushcart trade. Thirteenth Avenue gentrified into an avenue of specialty shops interspersed with regular merchandise stores, and

7371-440: The war in 1792, he traveled down this rural road. Gradually, farmers moved into the area and developed their homesteads along the road. Though the road was the major highway running through the towns of Brooklyn, Flatbush , Flatlands , Gravesend and New Utrecht , it did not have a commonly used name until the 19th century, when the portion from Brooklyn Ferry to Flatbush came to be called Flatbush Road, now Flatbush Avenue . It

7462-470: The weekday hustle and bustle, shops close and cars disappear on the Jewish Sabbath and Jewish holidays. The handful of chain stores, such as Rite Aid , Duane Reade and The Children's Place , also close on the Jewish Sabbath and Jewish holidays. On these days, Hasidim garbed in their holiday finery traverse the avenue to attend morning synagogue services, and couples stroll with their baby carriages in

7553-478: Was a thoroughfare specifically planned as such. The remaining land was unimproved. Johnson continued Brooklyn's street grid south with macadam pavement, graded the properties, installed gas, water, telephone, and electricity lines, and planted sugar maple trees – seven on the avenues and twenty along the streets. This opened over two hundred more building sites between Tenth and 13th Avenues as well as between 79th and 86th Streets. In 1895, Johnson, very much aware of

7644-481: Was built around the Van Pelt Manor House of 1686. In 1741 a Milestone was placed in front of the home to indicate the distances to New York City ( 8 + 1 ⁄ 4 miles), to Denyse’s Ferry ( 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 miles), and to Jamaica, Queens (15 miles). Kings Highway continued east into the Town of Gravesend, Brooklyn . According to the Brooklyn Eagle , in the 19th century, Kings Highway “was one of

7735-645: Was built in the late 1820s by Brigadier General René Edward De Russy of the US Army. De Russy was a military engineer who built many forts in the US – from the Canada–US border and the eastern seaboard to the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific coast – including Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn. Since this was the tallest natural point in southwest Brooklyn, he built his homestead here – it afforded

7826-609: Was engineer of the Water Bureau, Clarence Barrow was ex-Fire Commissioner, William C. Bryant was current Fire Commissioner, George W. Dickinson was a cotton-goods merchant, W. Bennett Wardell was a retired judge, Richard Perry Chittenden was Assistant of the Corporation Counsel , Freeland Willcox was Secretary of the Cheeseborough Vaseline Company, and Eugene Boucher was longshoreman and insurance broker. Since

7917-538: Was inhabited by a majority of people of Italian descent many of whom helped establish the Roman Catholic Shrine Church of Saint Bernadette (ca. 1935) on 13th Avenue between 82nd and 83rd streets. Dyker Heights Boulevard, also known as 13th Avenue, contains many Italian-owned businesses. Dyker Heights Boulevard is the only commercial district in Dyker Heights and is the de facto center of the neighborhood. Around 11th Avenue between 60th and 70th Streets lies

8008-409: Was known as New Utrecht Mount. According to the Brooklyn Eagle , it gave “the soldiers of revolutionary time an outlook from which they could note the movements of their opponents, not only as they approached from the sea, but maneuvered on Staten Island.” At 81st Street and Twelfth Avenue was Flax Pond. This site was filled in and developed; it is now occupied by Junior High School (JHS) 201. After

8099-486: Was often referred to simply as “lane” or “road,” followed by a short description. Thus it would be described as “the lane between Gravesend and New Utrecht.” It also took on local names in each town, such as “Gravesend Lane” and “Ferry Road.” The name “Kings Highway” was a common reference to public highways during colonial times and has been used for other roads around the New York City area that are in no way connected with

8190-463: Was so successful. Its location and luxurious homes were first rate, "[Dyker Heights] is without a rival as to location, situated as it is at an elevation of [110] feet above the sea level, and is directly opposite the new Dyker Meadow Park... which will be the only seaside park in Greater New York." The article also explained the exclusiveness of the property, which can be seen in "its massive stone piers with heavy wrought-iron lamps and scrolls" that adorn

8281-463: Was the architect of these three homes. Johnson's house burned down before 1900, Parfitt's was demolished by a developer in 1928 and replaced with seven, run-of-the-mill, fully detached, single-family homes, and Tuttle's house was remodeled over 10 years ago and clad in bright-white and sky-blue brick. Throughout the infancy of the development, Johnson was able to use the print press to his advantage. He advertised his suburban homes heavily and stated that

#939060